PG&E: Would not have monitored pipe differently

SAN JOSE, Calif. 
The San Jose Mercury News reports that despite revelations that its records did not provide complete details of its natural gas pipeline that exploded in a suburban San Francisco neighborhood last fall, officials at Pacific Gas & Electric Co. say they would not have monitored the pipeline any differently.

PG&E spokesman Joe Molica told the newspaper that even if its records had shown a welded seam, no changes would have been made in how the utility keeps track of the pipeline in San Bruno.

PG&E officials say federal regulations establish the same guidelines for pipes with seams and seamless pipes.

Federal investigators have determined that the blast, which killed eight people and left dozens of homes uninhabitable, originated at a poorly installed weld on the seam.